science

Renfe Class 352

Renfe Class 352 is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Renfe Class 352 rather than just read about it. In short: The Renfe Class 352 (formerly 2000-T) was a class of twin engined four axle diesel-hydraulic locomotives built by Krauss-Maffei, designed solely for passenger traffic; in particular they were responsible for towing Andalusian Talgo III trains. The class were very successful, heralding a new era of passenger trains in Spain.

Key takeaways

Renfe Class 352 belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Renfe Class 352 to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Renfe Class 352 from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Renfe Class 352 (formerly 2000-T) was a class of twin engined four axle diesel-hydraulic locomotives built by Krauss-Maffei, designed solely for passenger traffic; in particular they were responsible for towing Andalusian Talgo III trains. The class were very successful, heralding a new era of passenger trains in Spain. They were delivered in 1964 and 1965, and were fully withdrawn during the 1990s.

Background and design

With the Talgo II coaches having proved successful, and a new class of coaches—the Talgo III being introduced in the early 1960s—a new type of express locomotive was required to pull them. On 28 May 1962, the Board of Directors of Renfe placed an order for the locomotives needed, and the 2000-T series was born. Unlike the fixed formation Talgo II trains, the Talgo III was to have a locomotive which was separable from the coaches. Five locomotives were initially built by Krauss-Maffei, who gave the locomotives the internal designation ML 2400; in Spain they are placed in the class 2000-T. The Krauss-Maffei design was chosen since no other manufacturer offered similar power in the reduced height, and low centre of gravity that matches the Talgo trainsets, the internal design was very similar to the DB Class V 200.0 with the same engine and hydraulic drive, and similar bogies, though the exterior, and gauge are totally different. A further five locomotives were then built by Babcock & Wilcox under license. Being designed solely in order to pull Talgo III trains they had only one cab, an automatic Scharfenberg coupler, buffers specially adapted, and the necessary auxiliary power supply equipment. Each locomotive had two engines, each with its own transmission The two twelve cylinder engines each developed 1,200 horsepower (890 kW) and initially travelled at a maximum speed of 140 kilometres per hour (87 mph), a high speed for the time. In 1986 the maximum line speed limit was increased by Renfe to 160 km/h (99 mph). Upon delivery of the 2000 T the trains were tested using wagons from Transfesa, which were available at the time. At delivery and decommissioning they carried a red and silver livery, like all locomotives for the Talgo service, they were given names. Initially the locomotives had a 'wrap around' windscreen, in the 1980s they were refurbished with the windscreen replaced as part of a cab upgrade and an air conditioner was fitted on the roof at the same time.

Operations

Upon delivery, all were assigned to Aravaca. The first arrivals were assigned to Talgo services from Barcelona to Madrid from 20 August 1964. Hendaye, Bilbao and Seville were also destinations served, at the time they were the fastest machines of the Spanish Railways: On June 7, 1966, 2005T reached a speed of 230 km/h (140 mph) between Sevilla and Los Rosales. Electrification, and the introduction in the 1970s of the Japanese Renfe Class 269 displaced the locomotives onto non electrified lines. From then on Class 352 were used on non-electrified lines such as Badajoz - Lisbon, Granada - Almeria, Murcia - Cartagena. In 1980 352-004 was altered in order to tow the new Talgo pendular trains; working between Zaragoza and Madrid from June 1980. Later on it was used on Talgo pendular trains between Madrid and Cartagena. Between September 1995 to April 1996, 352-004 was used on the Talgo pendular Madrid - Cartagena replacing the damaged 354-008. The locomotives started to be decommissioned at the turn of the century - with machines requiring major work being removed rather than repaired. In time the last of the class to cease work was 312-001 (which was also the first delivered) was withdrawn in 2002 having given 38 years of service with over 7 million kilometers travelled.

Names and fleet details

After withdrawal 352-009 is preserved under the National Museum of the railways. The front cabin of 352-005 is on display at the railway museum Museu del Ferrocarril of Vilanova, whilst the front of 352-001 was given to the railway museum of Arganda. The control panel of one Class 352 is also kept in the museum of Délicias.

See also Renfe Class 353, Renfe Class 354 - subsequent faster and more powerful locomotives built to a very similar design by Krauss-Maffei.

References

Literature Casas Juan Carlos : Locomotoras diesel 352 y 353. in Via Libre n° 483, 02/2005 Salmeron i Bosch, Carles : Las locomotoras de España. Editorial Terminus, Barcelona, 1985

External links

Images of the Renfe Class 352 Archived 2009-02-01 at the Wayback Machine

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Renfe Class 352

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Renfe Class 352 claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Renfe Class 352 before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Renfe Class 352 ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Renfe Class 352

In research: Renfe Class 352 appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Renfe Class 352 in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Renfe Class 352 is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 5 ft 6 in gauge locomotives, B-B locomotives, Diesel locomotives of Spain, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Renfe Class 352 outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Renfe Class 352 in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Renfe Class 352 means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Renfe Class 352 out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Renfe Class 352 in simple terms?

Why does Renfe Class 352 matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Renfe Class 352?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Renfe Class 352.